Barbara Huntington, author of “Out of Touch”. Winner in the 2020 San Diego Memoir Showcase. Interview by Laura Engel, SDMWA Board President
LE: Congratulations on being one of our top ten winners this year! In a nutshell—please tell us about your winning memoir piece for the 6th Annual San Diego Memoir Showcase.
BH: As with so many others of my generation, I found myself sequestered alone with my dog when the pandemic hit. I am fortunate as I have an empty nest home and my garden, but I am also of an age that precludes visits from friends and family, and I long for human touch. June 20, my birthday, came around, and I finally consented to a masks-on, physically-distanced birthday with my son’s family under my deck in the backyard. I had no idea what would happen next.
LE: What has been your experience taking classes/workshops and writing memoir in San Diego?
BH: I have been taking classes at San Diego Writers, Ink (SDWI) since before it was at Liberty Station. I love the teachers, including Judy Reeves, Marni Freeman, Tracy Jones, Jim Moreno, Richard Farrell, and so many others. I especially like the Blazing Laptops fundraiser when the teachers volunteer their time, and we have sponsors for spending a day writing.
LE: This year has been unsettling in so many ways. How do you think that has affected your writing?
BH: I have been on a roller coaster. For the most part, the pandemic and the political upheaval has caused me to sit and scroll on Facebook. Classes at SDWI and beginning my MFA in poetry at SDSU have forced me to do whatever writing I have done, but brain fog sets in more often than not, and I seek other outside stimuli such as prompts from the Thursday Writers with Judy Reeves and Steve Montgomery.
LE: What are you excited about when it comes to participating in the 6th Annual Memoir Showcase?
BH: I am eager to share my story. I hope people will enjoy my writing and pick up my memoir and poems when they come out.
LE: What advice would you give new memoir writers?
BH: Join San Diego Writers, Ink, and take as many classes as you can. I also find support from workshops online and my Facebook Writer Friends. A special shout out to my Write and Critique memoir buddies on Tuesdays.
LE: Thank you so much, Barbara. We are all looking forward to watching your story performed on Facebook Live on Dec. 5 at 7 p.m.!